Amplia Enters into Second Agreement with Korean Specialist Drug Screening Company Next&Bio to Explore Combination Therapy with FAK Inhibitor and kRAS Inhibitors

HIGHLIGHTS

• The preclinical research collaboration with specialist drug screening company Next & Bio has been extended
  
  
  
  
• The collaboration explores the effect of Amplia’s FAK inhibitors in combination with experimental drugs called kRas inhibitors
  
  
  
  
• kRas inhibitors are being developed for the treatment of pancreatic cancer and other solid tumours

Melbourne, Australia, Dec. 19, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Amplia Therapeutics Limited (ASX:ATX; OTCQB:INNMF), (“Amplia” or the “Company”), is pleased to announce that it has entered into the second phase of a research collaboration with Korean preclinical drug screening company Next & Bio. This follows a successful initial engagement that demonstrated the powerful capability of the Next & Bio technology as well as promising preliminary data from the study.

The collaboration has been investigating the ability of Amplia’s FAK inhibitors to suppress the growth of patient-derived pancreatic cancer cells that possess genetic mutations in the kRAS gene known to be present in >90% of pancreatic cancers. Amplia’s best-in-class FAK inhibitor narmafotinib showed promising activity in these initial tests and this data will be presented at a forthcoming scientific conference.

Building on these promising data, further studies investigating the activity of a combination of narmafotinib with known inhibitors of the mutant kRAS gene will now be undertaken. kRAS inhibitors are an exciting new class of drug in development for a range of cancers including pancreatic cancer, and there is strong scientific rationale for a combination of FAK and kRAS inhibition to provide improved responses.

Next & Bio, a subsidiary of Hk Kolmar Holdings in Seoul, Korea, offers advanced drug screening by testing treatments on cancer cells taken directly from patients. The company has developed these patient-derived cell models specifically for pancreatic cancer. Importantly, these cells are grown to closely replicate the tumour environment for more accurate and predictive results.

Amplia’s Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Dr Chris Burns, commented, “The initial phase of our collaboration successfully demonstrated the activity of Amplia’s FAK inhibitors on patient-derived pancreatic cancer cells. Building on these promising results, we are eager to further investigate the potential synergy between narmafotinib and kRas inhibitors. This next phase of the collaboration is expected to strategically position Amplia for expanded partnering opportunities and commercial growth.”

Next and Bio’s Chief Executive Officer Mr SangWook Park, stated, “We are delighted to build on the success of our initial collaboration and to advance into a second phase of partnership with Amplia Therapeutics. In this collaboration, Next & Bio will leverage its preclinical research platform to investigate synergistic effects with kRAS inhibitors, with the ultimate goal of delivering new therapeutic options for pancreatic cancer patients with high unmet medical needs.”

This ASX announcement was approved and authorised for release by the Board of Amplia Therapeutics.

About Amplia Therapeutics Limited

Amplia Therapeutics Limited is an Australian pharmaceutical company advancing a pipeline of Focal Adhesion Kinase (FAK) inhibitors for cancer and fibrosis. FAK is an increasingly important target in the field of cancer and Amplia has a particular development focus in fibrotic cancers such as pancreatic and ovarian cancer. FAK also plays a significant role in a number of chronic diseases, such as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). For more information visit and follow Amplia on (@ampliatx) and .

About Narmafotinib

Narmafotinib (AMP945) is the company’s best-in-class inhibitor of the protein FAK, a protein over-expressed in pancreatic cancer and a drug target gaining increasing attention for its role in solid tumors. The drug, which is a highly potent and selective inhibitor of FAK, has shown promising data in a range of preclinical cancer studies. Narmafotinib is currently undergoing a clinical trial (the trial) where it is dosed in combination with the chemotherapies gemcitabine and Abraxane in first-line patients with advanced pancreatic cancer. The trial has already achieved its primary endpoint in achieving a confirmed response rate of 35%, superior to 23% reported in the benchmark MPACT study for gemcitabine and Abraxane alone. An interim median PFS of 7.6 months has also been reported. A second trial – – has recently opened and is being run under an IND at sites in Australia and the US, investigating the combination of narmafotinib with the chemotherapy FOLFIRINOX in advanced pancreatic cancer patients.

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